Editing August 15 (section)

==Events==
===Pre-1600===
* [[636]] &ndash; [[Arab–Byzantine wars]]: The [[Battle of Yarmouk]] between the [[Byzantine Empire]] and the [[Rashidun Caliphate]] begins.
* [[717]] &ndash; Arab–Byzantine wars: [[Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik]] begins the [[Second Arab Siege of Constantinople]], which will last for nearly a year.
* [[718]] &ndash; Arab–Byzantine wars: Raising of the [[Second Arab Siege of Constantinople]].
*[[AD 747|747]] &ndash; [[Carloman (mayor of the palace)|Carloman]], mayor of the palace of [[Austrasia]], renounces his position as ''[[majordomo]]'' and retires to a [[monastery]] near Rome. His brother, [[Pepin the Short]], becomes the sole ruler (''[[de facto]]'') of the [[Francia|Frankish Kingdom]].
* [[778]] &ndash; The [[Battle of Roncevaux Pass]] takes place between the army of [[Charlemagne]] and a Basque army.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/battleswarsto1000/p/roncevaux.htm|title=Charlemagne: Battle of Roncevaux Pass|last=Hickman|first=Kennedy|publisher=Military History|access-date=15 August 2019|archive-date=24 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151224163706/http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/battleswarsto1000/p/roncevaux.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[805]] &ndash; Noble Erchana of Dahauua grants the [[Bavaria]]n town of [[Dachau, Bavaria|Dachau]] to the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Munich and Freising|Diocese of Freising]]
* [[927]] &ndash; The [[Saracen]]s conquer and destroy [[Taranto]].
* [[982]] &ndash; [[Holy Roman Emperor]] [[Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor|Otto II]] is defeated by the [[Saracen]]s in the [[Battle of Capo Colonna]], in [[Calabria]].
*[[1018]] &ndash; Byzantine general [[Eustathios Daphnomeles]] blinds and captures [[Ivats|Ibatzes of Bulgaria]] by a ruse, thereby ending Bulgarian resistance against Emperor [[Basil II]]'s [[Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria|conquest of Bulgaria]].
*[[1038]] &ndash; King [[Stephen I of Hungary|Stephen I]], the first king of Hungary, dies; his nephew, [[Peter Orseolo]], succeeds him.
*[[1057]] &ndash; King [[Macbeth, King of Scotland|Macbeth]] is killed at the [[Battle of Lumphanan]] by the forces of [[Malcolm III of Scotland|Máel Coluim mac Donnchada]].
*[[1070]] &ndash; The [[Pavia]]n-born [[Benedictine]] [[Lanfranc]] is appointed as the new [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] in England.
*[[1096]] &ndash; Starting date of the [[First Crusade]] as set by [[Pope Urban II]].<ref>{{citation|last=Hallam|first=Elizabeth|year=1989|title=Chronicles of the Crusades: Eye-witness Accounts of the Wars Between Christianity and Islam|publisher=Bramley|isbn=9781858335896|page=63}}</ref>
*[[1185]] &ndash; The cave city of [[Vardzia]] is consecrated by Queen [[Tamar of Georgia]].
*[[1224]] &ndash; The [[Livonian Brothers of the Sword]], a Catholic military order, [[Siege of Tartu (1224)|occupy Tarbatu]] (today [[Tartu]]) as part of the [[Livonian Crusade]].<ref>Tarvel, Enn (ed.). ''Henriku Liivimaa kroonika. Heinrici Chronicon Livoniae.'' Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1982. (in Estonian)</ref><ref>Vahtre, Sulev. ''Muinasaja loojang Eestis : vabadusvõitlus 1208–1227.''Tallinn: Olion, 1990. (in Estonian)</ref>
*[[1237]] &ndash; [[Spanish Reconquista]]: The [[Battle of the Puig]] between the [[Al-Andalus|Moorish]] forces of [[Taifa of Valencia]] against the [[Kingdom of Aragon]] culminates in an Aragonese victory.
*[[1248]] &ndash; The [[Cornerstone|foundation stone]] of [[Cologne Cathedral]], built to house the [[Shrine of the Three Kings|relics]] of the [[Biblical Magi|Three Wise Men]], is laid. (Construction is eventually completed in [[1880]].)
*[[1261]] &ndash; [[Michael VIII Palaiologos]] is crowned as the first [[List of Byzantine emperors|Byzantine emperor]] in fifty-seven years.
*[[1281]] &ndash; [[Mongol invasions of Japan|Mongol invasion of Japan]]: The [[Mongol Empire|Mongolian]] fleet of [[Kublai Khan]] is destroyed by a "[[kamikaze (typhoon)|divine wind]]" for the second time in the [[Battle of Kōan]].
*[[1310]] &ndash; [[Rhodes (city)|The city of Rhodes]] surrenders to the forces of the [[Knights Hospitaller|Knights of St. John]], completing [[Hospitaller conquest of Rhodes|their conquest of Rhodes]]. The knights establish their headquarters on the island and rename themselves the [[Knights Hospitaller|Knights of Rhodes]].
*[[1430]] &ndash; [[Francesco I Sforza|Francesco Sforza]], lord of [[Milan]], conquers [[Lucca]].
*[[1461]] &ndash; The [[Empire of Trebizond]] surrenders to the forces of Sultan [[Mehmed II]]. This is regarded by some historians as the real end of the [[Byzantine Empire]]. Emperor [[David of Trebizond|David]] is exiled and later murdered.
*[[1483]] &ndash; [[Pope Sixtus IV]] consecrates the [[Sistine Chapel]].
*[[1511]] &ndash; [[Afonso de Albuquerque]] of Portugal [[Capture of Malacca (1511)|conquers]] [[Malacca]], the capital of the [[Malacca Sultanate]].
*[[1517]] &ndash; Seven Portuguese armed [[Watercraft|vessels]] led by [[Fernão Pires de Andrade]] meet Chinese officials at the [[Pearl River Delta|Pearl River estuary]].
*[[1519]] &ndash; [[Panama City, Panama]] is founded.
*[[1534]] &ndash; [[Ignatius of Loyola]] and six classmates take initial vows, leading to the creation of the [[Society of Jesus]] in September 1540.
*[[1537]] &ndash; [[Asunción, Paraguay]] is founded.
*[[1540]] &ndash; [[Arequipa, Peru]] is founded.
*[[1549]] &ndash; [[Society of Jesus|Jesuit]] priest [[Francis Xavier]] comes ashore at [[Kagoshima]] (Traditional [[Japanese calendar|Japanese date]]: 22 July 1549).
*[[1592]] &ndash; [[Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–98)|Imjin War]]: At the [[Battle of Hansan Island]], the Korean Navy, led by [[Yi Sun-sin]], [[Yi Eok-gi]], and [[Won Gyun]], decisively defeats the Japanese Navy, led by [[Wakisaka Yasuharu]].<ref>{{citation|last=Hawley|first=Samuel|year=2005|title=The Imjin War|publisher=The Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch/UC Berkeley Press|isbn=89-954424-2-5 |page=239}}</ref>
*[[1599]] &ndash; [[Nine Years' War (Ireland)|Nine Years' War]]: [[Battle of Curlew Pass]]: Irish forces led by [[Hugh Roe O'Donnell]] successfully ambush English forces, led by Sir [[Conyers Clifford]], sent to relieve Collooney Castle.
===1601–1900===
*[[1695]] &ndash; French forces end the [[Bombardment of Brussels (1695)|bombardment of Brussels]].
*[[1760]] &ndash; [[Seven Years' War]]: [[Battle of Liegnitz (1760)|Battle of Liegnitz]]: [[Frederick the Great]]'s victory over the [[Austrians]] under [[Ernst Gideon von Laudon]].
*[[1824]] &ndash; The [[Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]], the last surviving French general of the [[American Revolutionary War]], arrives in New York and begins a [[Visit of the Marquis de Lafayette to the United States|tour of 24 states]].
*[[1843]] &ndash; The [[Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace]] in [[Honolulu|Honolulu, Hawaii]] is dedicated. Now the cathedral of the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu]], it is the oldest [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] [[cathedral]] in continuous use in the United States.
*  1843   &ndash; [[Tivoli Gardens]], one of the oldest still intact [[amusement park]]s in the world, opens in [[Copenhagen]], Denmark.
*[[1863]] &ndash; The [[Bombardment of Kagoshima|Anglo-Satsuma War]] begins between the [[Satsuma Domain]] of Japan and the United Kingdom (Traditional [[Japanese calendar|Japanese date]]: July 2, 1863).
*[[1893]] &ndash; [[Ibadan]] area becomes a British [[Protectorate]] after a treaty signed by Fijabi, the [[Olubadan|Baale of Ibadan]] with the British acting Governor of [[Lagos Colony|Lagos]], George C. Denton.
*[[1899]] &ndash; [[Fratton Park]] football ground in [[Portsmouth]], [[England]] is officially first opened.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aroundthegrounds.org/grounds-hub/fratton-park/|title = Fratton Park the home of Portsmouth}}</ref>
===1901–present===
*[[1907]] &ndash; Ordination in Constantinople of Fr. [[Raphael Morgan]], the first African-American [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]] priest, "Priest-Apostolic" to America and the West Indies.
*[[1914]] &ndash; A servant of American [[architect]], [[Frank Lloyd Wright]], sets fire to the living quarters of Wright's [[Wisconsin]] home, [[Taliesin (studio)|Taliesin]], and murders seven people there.
*  1914   &ndash; The [[Panama Canal]] opens to traffic with the transit of the cargo ship {{SS|Ancon|1901|6}}.
*  1914   &ndash; [[World War I]]: The [[1st Army (Russian Empire)|First Russian Army]], led by [[Paul von Rennenkampf]], enters [[East Prussia]].
*  1914   &ndash; World War I: Beginning of the [[Battle of Cer]], the first [[Allies of World War I|Allied]] victory of World War I.
*[[1915]] &ndash; A story in ''New York World'' newspaper reveals that the Imperial German government had purchased excess phenol from Thomas Edison that could be used to make explosives for the war effort and [[Great Phenol Plot|diverted it]] to Bayer for aspirin production.
*[[1920]] &ndash; [[Polish–Soviet War]]: [[Battle of Warsaw (1920)|Battle of Warsaw]], so-called Miracle at the Vistula.
*[[1935]] &ndash; [[Will Rogers]] and [[Wiley Post]] are killed after their aircraft develops engine problems during takeoff in [[Barrow, Alaska]].
*[[1939]] &ndash; Twenty-six [[Junkers Ju 87]] bombers commanded by [[Walter Sigel]] meet unexpected ground fog during a dive-bombing demonstration for Luftwaffe generals at [[Świętoszów|Neuhammer]]. Thirteen of them crash and burn.
*  1939   &ndash; ''[[The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)|The Wizard of Oz]]'' premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theater in [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, California]].<ref>{{cite web | title= No Place Like Home: 'Wizard of Oz' premiered here 70 years ago | url= http://host.madison.com/article_5c61ec86-41d1-5eef-a2da-e2ad874a4aeb.html | date= August 18, 2009 | first= Katjusa | last= Cisar | publisher= Madison.com | access-date= October 21, 2011 | archive-date= August 25, 2017 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170825104341/http://host.madison.com/article_5c61ec86-41d1-5eef-a2da-e2ad874a4aeb.html | url-status= live }}</ref>
*[[1940]] &ndash; An [[Kingdom of Italy|Italian]] submarine torpedoes and sinks the {{ship|Greek cruiser|Elli|1912|6}} at [[Tinos]] harbor during peacetime, marking the most serious Italian provocation prior to the outbreak of the [[Greco-Italian War]] in October.
*[[1941]] &ndash; Corporal [[Josef Jakobs]] is executed by firing squad at the [[Tower of London]] at 07:12, making him the last person to be executed at the Tower for [[espionage]].
*[[1942]] &ndash; [[World War II]]: [[Operation Pedestal]]: The oil tanker {{SS|Ohio}} reaches the island of [[Malta]] barely afloat carrying vital fuel supplies for the island's defenses.
*[[1943]] &ndash; World War II:  [[Battle of Trahili]]: Superior German forces surround Cretan partisans, who manage to escape against all odds.
*[[1944]] &ndash; World War II: [[Operation Dragoon]]: Allied forces land in [[southern France]].
*[[1945]] &ndash; [[Hirohito|Emperor Hirohito]] [[Hirohito surrender broadcast|broadcasts his declaration of surrender]] following the effective [[surrender of Japan]] in [[World War II]]; [[Korea under Japanese rule|Korea]] gains [[National Liberation Day of Korea|independence]] from the [[Empire of Japan]].
*[[1947]] &ndash; [[India]] gains [[Indian independence movement|independence]] from [[British Raj|British rule]] after near 190 years of [[Company rule in India|British company]] and [[British Raj|crown rule]] and joins the [[Commonwealth of Nations]].
*  1947   &ndash; Founder of Pakistan, [[Muhammad Ali Jinnah]] is sworn in as first [[Governor-General of Pakistan]] in [[Karachi]].
*[[1948]] &ndash; The [[First Republic of Korea]] (South Korea) is established in the southern half of the peninsula.
*[[1950]] &ndash; Measuring {{M|w|link=y}} 8.6, the [[1950 Assam–Tibet earthquake|largest earthquake on land]] occurs in the [[India–Myanmar border|Assam-Tibet-Myanmar border]], killing 4,800.<ref>{{cite web |title=M 8.6 – 1950 Assam-Tibet Earthquake |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/official19500815140934_30/executive |website=earthquake.usgs.gov |publisher=USGS |access-date=14 August 2021}}</ref>
*[[1952]] &ndash; [[Lynmouth Flood|A flash flood]] drenches the town of [[Lynmouth]], England, killing 34 people.
*[[1954]] &ndash; [[Alfredo Stroessner]] begins his dictatorship in [[Paraguay]].
*[[1959]] &ndash; [[American Airlines Flight 514]], a [[Boeing 707]], crashes near the [[Calverton Executive Airpark]] in [[Calverton, New York]], killing all five people on board.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ranter |first=Harro |title=ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 707-123 N7514A Calverton-Peconic River Airport, NY (CTO) |url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19590815-0 |access-date=2022-04-13 |website=aviation-safety.net |publisher=[[Aviation Safety Network]]}}</ref>
*[[1960]] &ndash; [[Republic of the Congo]] ([[Brazzaville]]) becomes independent from [[French Fourth Republic|France]].
*[[1961]] &ndash; Border guard [[Conrad Schumann]] flees from [[East Germany]] while on duty guarding the construction of the [[Berlin Wall]].
*[[1962]] &ndash; [[James Joseph Dresnok]] defects to [[North Korea]] after running across the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone]]. Dresnok died in 2016.
*[[1963]] &ndash; Execution of [[Henry John Burnett]], the last man to be hanged in [[Scotland]].
*  1963   &ndash; President [[Fulbert Youlou]] is overthrown in the [[Republic of the Congo]], after a [[Trois Glorieuses (1963)|three-day uprising]] in the capital.
*[[1965]] &ndash; [[The Beatles]] play to nearly [[The Beatles' 1965 US tour|60,000 fans at Shea Stadium]] in New York City, an event later regarded as the birth of [[arena rock|stadium rock]].
*[[1969]] &ndash; The [[Woodstock|Woodstock Music & Art Fair]] opens in [[Bethel, New York]], featuring some of the top rock musicians of the era.
*[[1970]] &ndash; [[Patricia Palinkas]] becomes the first woman to play professionally in an [[American football]] game.
*[[1971]] &ndash; President [[Richard Nixon]] completes the break from the [[gold standard]] by [[Nixon Shock|ending]] convertibility of the [[United States dollar]] into gold by foreign investors.
*  1971   &ndash; [[Bahrain]] gains [[Independence Day (Bahrain)|independence]] from the United Kingdom.
*[[1973]] &ndash; [[Vietnam War]]: The USAF [[Operation Freedom Deal|bombing of Cambodia]] ends.
*[[1974]] &ndash; [[Yuk Young-soo]], [[First Lady]] of South Korea, is killed during an apparent assassination attempt upon [[President of South Korea|President]] [[Park Chung Hee]].
*[[1975]] &ndash; [[Bangladeshis|Bangladeshi]] leader [[Sheikh Mujibur Rahman]] is killed along with most members of his family during a military coup.
*  1975   &ndash; [[Takeo Miki]] makes the first official pilgrimage to [[Yasukuni Shrine]] by an incumbent [[Prime Minister of Japan|prime minister]] on the anniversary of the end of World War II.
*[[1976]] &ndash; [[SAETA Flight 011 (1976)|SAETA Flight 011]] crashes into the [[Chimborazo]] volcano in [[Ecuador]], killing all 59 people on board; the wreckage is not discovered until 2002.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident Vickers 785D Viscount HC-ARS Chimborazo Volcano|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19760815-0|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-27|website=aviation-safety.net|publisher=[[Aviation Safety Network]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051109171533/http://www.aviation-safety.net:80/database/record.php?id=19760815-0 |archive-date=2005-11-09 }}</ref>
*[[1977]] &ndash; [[Ohio State University Radio Observatory|The Big Ear]], a [[radio telescope]] operated by [[Ohio State University]] as part of the [[Search for extraterrestrial intelligence|SETI]] project, receives a radio signal from deep space; the event is named the "[[Wow! signal]]" from the notation made by a volunteer on the project.
*[[1984]] &ndash; The [[Kurdistan Workers' Party]] in [[Turkey]] starts a campaign of armed attacks upon the [[Turkish Armed Forces]] with an [[1984 PKK attacks|attack on police and gendarmerie bases in Şemdinli and Eruh]].
*[[1985]] &ndash; Signing of the [[Assam Accord]], an agreement between representatives of the [[Government of India]] and the leaders of the [[Assam Movement]] to end the movement.
*[[1989]] &ndash; [[China Eastern Airlines Flight 5510]] crashes after takeoff from [[Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport]], killing 34 of the 40 people on board.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ASN Aircraft accident Antonov An-24RV B-3417 Shanghai-Hongqiao Airport (SHA) |url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19890815-1 |access-date=2023-02-02 |website=aviation-safety.net}}</ref>
*[[1995]] &ndash; In [[South Carolina]], [[Shannon Faulkner]] becomes the first female [[cadet]] matriculated at [[The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina|The Citadel]] (she drops out less than a week later).
*  1995   &ndash; [[Tomiichi Murayama]], Prime Minister of Japan, releases the [[Murayama Statement]], which formally expresses remorse for [[Japanese war crimes]] committed during [[World War II]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/press/pm/murayama/9508.html|title=MOFA: Statement by Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama "On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the war's end" (15 August 1995)|website=www.mofa.go.jp|access-date=2020-01-24}}</ref>
*[[1998]] &ndash; [[Northern Ireland]]: [[Omagh bombing]] takes place; 29 people (including a woman pregnant with twins) killed and some 220 others injured.<ref>{{cite web |title=Omagh bomb: Bell tolls to mark 20th anniversary |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-45144511 |website=BBC News |access-date=2 February 2023 |date=15 August 2018}}</ref>
*  1998   &ndash; [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] introduces the [[iMac]] computer.<ref>{{cite web|title=Apple Fast Facts|website=CNN|date=July 2014|access-date=January 12, 2022|url=https://www.cnn.com/2014/07/01/business/apple-fast-facts/index.html}}</ref>
*[[1999]] &ndash; [[Béni Ounif|Beni Ounif massacre]] in [[Algeria]]: Some 29 people are killed at a false roadblock near the Moroccan border, leading to temporary tensions with [[Morocco]].
*[[2005]] &ndash; [[Israeli disengagement from the Gaza Strip|Israel's unilateral disengagement plan]] to evict all [[Israelis]] from the [[Gaza Strip]] and from four [[Israeli settlement|settlements]] in the northern [[West Bank]] begins.
*  2005   &ndash; The Helsinki Agreement between the [[Free Aceh Movement]] and the [[Government of Indonesia]] was signed, ending [[Insurgency in Aceh|almost three decades of fighting]].
*[[2007]] &ndash; An [[2007 Peru earthquake|8.0-magnitude earthquake]] off the Pacific coast devastates [[Ica Region|Ica]] and various regions of [[Peru]] killing 514 and injuring 1,090.
*[[2013]] &ndash; At least 27 people are killed and 226 injured in an [[August 2013 Beirut bombing|explosion]] in southern [[Beirut]] near a complex used by Lebanon's militant group [[Hezbollah]] in Lebanon. A previously unknown [[Syria]]n [[Sunni]] group claims responsibility in an online video.
*  2013   &ndash; The [[Smithsonian]] announces the discovery of the [[olinguito]], the first new carnivorous species found in the Americas in 35 years.
*[[2015]] &ndash; [[North Korea]] moves its clock back half an hour to introduce [[Time in North Korea|Pyongyang Time]], 8{{frac|1|2}} hours ahead of [[UTC]].
*[[2020]] &ndash; Russia begins production on the [[Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Russia Fast Facts|website=CNN|date=29 October 2013|access-date=January 11, 2022|url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/10/29/world/russia-fast-facts/index.html}}</ref>
*[[2021]] &ndash; [[Kabul]] [[Fall of Kabul (2021)|falls]] into the hands of the [[Taliban]] as [[Ashraf Ghani]] flees Afghanistan along with local residents and foreign nationals, effectively reestablishing the [[Afghanistan|Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan]].